The Ship Of Dreams
by Whofangirl35
Summary: S/Q AU Set Aboard Titanic where Impoverished Artist Emma Swan meets unhappy socialite Regina Mills on its maiden voyage and sparks fly.
1. Chapter 1

The Elderly woman stood at the base of her beloved apple tree picking the rich, red fruit with her gnarled fingers. It was a task she relished in doing even though in recent years the arthritis had made it more difficult. Even so, she looked younger than  
her ninety five years and was lucky enough to have escaped many of the illnesses that often plagued her generation. She started to make her way back into the large house. Her granddaughter had spoken to her about downsizing but even though it was  
a little too big she couldn't bring herself to part with it. It was where her children had taken their first steps, where they had celebrated birthdays and christmases and even though those days were far behind her the memories were still there, in  
that building. As she made her way into the kitchen to put her basket of apples on the counter the words of the announcer on the news channel from the TV reached her ears.

"And in the last few hours the team led by Professor Oswald Greene have pulled up something very special from the long lost wreck of the fated ship RMS Titanic and I'm hopeful in a few minutes we will be able to speak to Professor Greene. It is  
believed that the team involved in 'Operation Cobra' were looking for the famed cursed crystal that was reported to be aboard Titanic and presumed lost when it tragically sank"

The woman listened intently, her apples forgotten as she made her way to the sitting room. She sat down and turned up the volume as the announcer continued talking.

"We're now joined by Professor Greene via live satellite link from the North Atlantic Ocean. Professor Greene, thank you for joining us, can you tell us what you and the 'Operation Cobra' team have discovered? Was it what you hoped to find?"

The wide eyed man appeared on the screen and slightly out of sync and out of focus began to talk. "Well Michael, as you may have heard we have been searching for the fabled Cursed Crystal and today we believe we discovered the first class suite belonging  
to Leopold White who as you know, after miraculously surviving the worlds most famous shipwreck went on to become President of the United States. Earlier today we pulled up a safe and have been working on opening it for the past few hours. I am afraid  
to tell you that we have not yet found the said Cursed Crystal but we have found this" Professor Greene pointed the camera to a piece of paper soaking in water, almost perfectly preserved. The picture on the satellite link suddenly came into focus  
and there it was, a drawing of a stunning woman reclining on a chaise-lounge, her dark eyes smouldering and her beautiful dark hair falling around her face, she was completely naked apart from an obscenely large gem hanging by a chain around her neck.  
"As you can see" continued the very enthusiastic Professor, "The unknown woman appears to be wearing the Cursed Crystal and whilst we cannot make out the signature of the artist apart from the letter 'E' the date is very significant. This drawing  
is believed to have been done on 14th April 1912, merely hours before the ship hit the iceberg, so whilst the Crystal itself is missing, we know that it was indeed on board at the time of the Titanic sinking"

The woman raised her hand to her mouth as her dark eyes looked into the younger dark eyes of the woman on the screen in front of her. Shaking, she reached out and grabbed the telephone next to her chair and dialled.

Professor Oswald Greene finished his interview with CNN news and as he hung up he looked once again at the drawing they had found in fascination. The look of the woman's face seemed to draw him in. He had never seen anyone so beautiful in his life before.  
Who was she? She looked almost regal. He realised with a jolt that this drawing was done seventy seven years ago and the woman had more than likely died along with the hundreds of others that day. His assistant came bursting into the cabin. "Oz" the  
excited young woman said breathlessly "You have a phone call" Oswald sighed, he just wanted a moment of peace to enjoy his discovery. "Tell them I'm busy Emily, I've just done an interview, I don't want to do another one right now" Emily smiled and  
said "Oz, you're really going to want to take this one, its a lady, she says she knows who the woman in the picture is"  
Oswald jumped up and all but ran to the end of the corridor into the communications cabin. He picked up the phone. "Hello? Who am I speaking to please?" There was a pause and then a clear, deep, female voice spoke. "Professor Oswald? My name is Gina Swan-Mills"  
Oswald replied "Mrs Swan-Mills, thank you for calling. I understand you know the identity of the woman in our drawing" That hypnotising voice responded. "I do Professor Oswald, the girl in that drawing is me" 


	2. EMMA

CHAPTER 1-EMMA

Emma Swan had always been a free spirit. She had been left on the side of the road as a newborn and found by a little boy no more than 7 years old out collecting wood for his father. August Booth had taken her home and she had been raised by his  
father Marco until the age of 3 when he tragically died in a mine collapse that killed more than half of the men in Storybrooke, Maine. The two children found themselves completely alone and left to fend for themselves. They were in an orphanage in  
Boston together for a while, then Emma was adopted but she was sent back within the year because of her wilful spirit and inability to obey the rules. When August aged out at 14 and was expected to leave and make his own way in the world with no more  
than a dollar to his name, he couldn't bear to be apart from the little girl who had become his sister and closest friend so he took the 7 year old blonde with him and they hitched all the way from Boston to Tallahassee never looking back.

Life was hard over the following years. August picked up work where he could and did his best to support himself and Emma. they stuck to farmland mostly where there was a barn or outhouse they could crash in. Emma's favourite places were the ones where  
there were lots of families and children she could play with and later in life she realised how lucky she was that August stuck by her and allowed her to have some sort of a childhood while he worked all the hours he could.

It was when they were in Chicago, however when things started to look up for the pair. August, aged 17 had been apprenticed to the editor in chief of the Chicago Tribune. Within a matter of months he was a full blown journalist and found he had a real  
talent for telling stories. He and Emma found a small affordable apartment and August made sure she was enrolled in school. Emma was, by this time, a wilful 10 year old and, as she had all her life, had problems obeying the rules. She was caned so  
many times in the first few months that her palms and behind were permanently red raw, but try as she might she just couldn't seem to behave. She did, however, love it when, on a Friday afternoon they were allowed to use the limited art supplies available  
and were taught rudimentary drawing and painting. In those classes, she shone.

By the age of 13 Emma Swan had given up with school. Her relationship with August started to break down. He had given up half of his young life to raise the girl and make sure she wanted for nothing and she just let him down time and time again. She got  
involved with petty crime and was almost arrested on more than one occasion for pick pocketing. August was building quite the reputation as a talented journalist and no matter what he tried, he couldn't get Emma to take anything in her life seriously.  
When she was 15 he was offered the post of Editor in Chief of The Storybrooke Mirror back in his hometown, a big deal for one so young. He immediately made plans to move back to Maine with Emma. It was then that she met Neal Cassidy.

Neal was a bad lot. He was a runner for one of the biggest Chicago crime gangs and very good at it. Emma was immediately attracted by his charm and cheeky good looks. Most of all he made her laugh. So when August told her to pack her things for a move  
back to Maine it didn't take a lot of convincing from Neal for her to tell him she was staying in Chicago. August tried so hard to get her to go with him but the pull of Neal and his fun life was too much to resist. For the first time in 15 years  
they were separated and August reluctantly left Emma in Neal's care.

For the next 2 years Emma was living the dream. She went to wild parties organised by some of the biggest Mafia families. She played poker in smoky gambling dens and found she was good at it so started to hustle. She and Neal lived a high flying existence  
moving from Hotel room to hotel room, skipping out before they had to pay for a thing. Finally, about 3 months shy of Emma's 18th birthday, their life of good living and crime caught up with them. Neal had been on his way back from fencing some stolen  
goods when he was shot by some members of a rival gang. Emma never saw him again. She was depressed and miserable. She wouldn't eat and couldn't sleep and without Neal had no way to support herself. She went back to the thing she had always loved  
as a kid. Art. She started painting portraits of people for money and rented a small room in a dilapidated house. Just after her 18th birthday she realised that her dress didn't fit quite as well as it used to and when she started vomiting she realised  
that to her horror Neal had left her a legacy. She had no idea how far along she was but there was no doubt that she was pregnant. Within another month her landlady had realised this fact and kicked her to the curb, not willing to associate with a  
single mother. Emma felt she had no choice but to turn to the one person who had always looked out for her and tried to do what was best for her. August.

It took Emma a further 2 months to finally hitch her way to Maine, stopping many times along the way. Her belly was large and protruding by the time she staggered up the road towards the sign she hadn't seen since the age of 3 saying, Storybrooke, Maine.  
She made her way down Main street and into the offices of the Storybrooke Mirror before she doubled over in pain and promptly collapsed. Henry Daniel Swan was born that night in August Booths smart house and 2 days later, not even being able to look  
at her son, Emma Swan left Storybrooke leaving behind a tiny baby and a letter asking August to take care of him until she was worthy enough to do so herself.

Emma travelled far and wide painting and drawing to earn a living, She travelled most of the USA and then managed to gain passage on a boat to Europe travelling to Spain, France, Italy and then on to England. Every time she made any money she would send  
it back to August and her son keeping only enough to eat and sleep. She went back to her old hustling ways and in a Poker Den in Southampton, England her life changed forever. She was playing Poker with a couple of Irish lads. She had already won  
every penny they had but so loathed were they to lose to a girl they bet the only things they had left. Passage back to New York on The SS Titanic known as the ship of dreams.

The clock on the wall of the small poker den was edging ever closer to 11am. The sound of a large ships horns gave a deep bellow. Emma played her final hand and sighed with relief that she had one the game. "Sorry Boys" she stated, standing  
and sweeping the money into her hat and grabbing her ticket. "Gotta run, I have a ship waiting for me" With that she ran as fast as she could along Southampton docks jumping aboard the third class entrance of the biggest and grandest ship  
she had ever seen in her life just as the gangplank was being pulled in. The ship departed and she was on her way home, ready to see her small family again and hoping August would forgive her.


	3. REGINA

**Hi Everyone. Sorry about the delay. I really hope you enjoy this chapter. I've had a bit of writers block but reviews and feedback would really help. Let me know of this is worthcontinuing. Thanks all.**

Regina Mills was destined for greatness. At least that was what her mother told her every time she asked to do something fun. She wanted to play with the maids twin boys but was told "Regina, young ladies do not play with boys. You are destined for greatness  
and I will not have you ruining your reputation" Regina was never sure what 'destined for greatness' meant but one thing was certain, she didn't want it.

Cora was the daughter of an impoverished farmer. Her father was a drunk and as soon as she could she left and managed to scrape her way up from the gutter and marry Henry who was on the verge of making his fortune in the steel industry. This he did and  
they were soon living a very luxurious life. Regina followed a year or so later and was doted on by her father. They were, however rather looked down upon by other members of high society as they were 'new money', a term Cora had never heard of until  
she eavesdropped a conversation between some fellow members of the local Ladies Aid Association. Always wanting to be respected and admired, Cora went home angry and vowed that when she grew up, the then two year Regina would be her ticket to acceptable  
society.

As she got older, it became more and more obvious that Regina would not be satisfied by the pursuits of a young lady. She had no interest in needle point, the piano alluded her and she had no singing talent to speak of. As such Cora had nothing to boast  
about with the people she desperately wanted to impress, this annoyed her greatly and she became more and more infuriated by her headstrong daughter. The one thing she could be proud of, however, was Regina's great beauty. By the age of seven it became  
clear that she was going to be quite stunning and Cora had high hopes of a good marriage

The one thing that Regina enjoyed doing, that her mother approved of was horse riding. Cora believed it to be ladylike and it was a sport pursued by girls from the wealthiest and most high powered families, Henry had bought Regina a beautiful horse for  
her 10th birthday. A stallion far too big for a young girl but she fell in love with him instantly. Being the headstrong young lady she was, Regina didn't listen when her father told her she wouldn't be big enough to ride Rociante for at least a couple  
of years and demanded, when arriving at the stables a couple of days later that her pony be put back in his stall and her new horse be saddled up. Of course her father was right. Rociante was too big and powerful for a 10 year old and she was thrown.  
She broke a couple of ribs, a leg and her collar bone but the worst thing, according to Cora, was the way her face was damaged. Even after the other wounds healed she was left with a scar above her top lip. Cora has told her that no man would want  
her now and she was worthless to everyone. Regina wasn't sure that was a bad thing.

As she got older, it was clear that even a scar on her lip wouldn't make Regina unattractive. Her accident hadn't stopped her love of horses and the couple of hours peace she got everyday with Rociante riding were the best of her life. When she was 16  
a new stable boy was employed by the Mills family. Daniel Coulter was tall, dark and handsome. Shy at first, Regina didn't know how to speak to him but after a couple of riding sessions and seeing how he was with her beloved Rociante they were the  
best of friends. He was two years older than her and they spent a lot of time together. Eventually the friendly glances turned to desire filled looks and by the time Daniel had been with the family for 6 months he and Regina were madly in love. They  
spent every moment together and soon Cora started to notice. She decided it was time for Regina to meet a suitable match and began to throw extravagant parties and weekend gathering for the elite and their sons. It wasn't long before the invitations  
were returned and The Mills family were invited to gatherings up and down the country. It was at one such gathering that Regina's life changed forever.

A reluctant Henry and Regina had been dragged to yet another weekend gathering, this time hosted by Molly Brown, new money like themselves but proud of it and not willing to accept the mean glances and snooty attitudes. It was a big gathering, Regina  
had gone out riding for the day to try and escape her mother, who had on this occasion been trying to palm her off on a young English lord, Robin of Locksley. As she paused by a large tree on the property she heard screams coming from the woodland  
nearby. Before she could investigate a pretty white pony carrying a little girl came dashing out from the trees. The young rider was terrified and carried on screaming whilst clinging on for dear life. Regina jumped back on the black mare she was  
riding and galloped off in pursuit. As she galloped alongside the little white pony she grabbed it rein and started to slow down. When they came to a stop she jumped off the mare and helped down the pretty little girl who was sobbing and shaking.  
She gripped her round the neck tightly as Regina put her on the ground.

"Th…..th….thankyou" said the young girl.

"You're welcome" Regina replied "What are you doing out here on your own?"

"I was out riding with my Daddy and my pony got scared by some dogs barking and took off" stammered the girl"

"Whats your name sweetie?" Asked Regina

"M…Mary-Margaret White" said the girl just before a flurry of hooves were heard.

"Mary-Margaret thank goodness you're alright" Said a man on a brown stallion. He jumped down and his daughter ran into his arms. "Leopold White" said the man to Regina, "I am entirely in your debt"

Cora Mills was a very happy woman. Her daughter had rescued the daughter of Leopold White, a senator who was tipped to become President. His wife had passed away leaving him as a single father to 10 year old Mary-Margaret. She brushed aside the arguments  
of her husband, Henry that the man was near his own age, 3 times that of Regina. This was her ticket to the life she had always dreamed of. If things worked out, she would be mother to the next First Lady of the USA.

4 months after the fateful day when she rescued the senators daughter, Regina burst into the stables and ran sobbing into Daniels arms.

"Daniel, we have to get away, you have to take me away" She sobbed.

"What's wrong Regina? Why are you so upset?" Said Daniel trying to sooth her.

"It's happened, Leopold asked for my hand this afternoon and Mother accepted on my behalf. I can't marry him Daniel, I can't. He's old enough to be my father and if I marry him, I'll never see you again. Please take me away"

Daniel stopped for a moment and said "Regina, we'll talk about this later, we really shouldn't talk about this now"

"Why?" replied Regina sniffing

"Because we have a visitor" He said, gesturing to the entrance of the stable. There stood a shock stricken Mary-Margaret.

Regina and Daniel sat Mary-Margaret down on the nearest hay bale and explained how in love they were and how Regina didn't want to marry her father, nice as he was. They begged her not to tell Cora or Leopold and she agreed but of course, as with many  
young girls, she was easily manipulated to spill her secret by Cora.

The night they were due to make their escape, Regina ran down to the stable to get ready to leave with Daniel, he was lying in one of the stalls fast asleep, or so she thought. She knelt beside him and kissed his head to wake him up. It was then that  
she realised he wasn't breathing. Just like that her dreams were dashed and her love dead. No one ever discovered how he died as he had not a mark on him. It was ruled as natural causes but Regina always had her suspicions by how unsurprised her mother  
seemed that the young stable boy had just dropped down dead. She had no choice but to obey her mothers wishes and was soon engaged to Leopold White.

Much as she knew it wasn't really the young girls fault, Regina struggled to even speak to Mary-Margaret after Daniels death. She managed to persuade Leopold that a year at an exclusive girls boarding school in England would do her the world of good and  
give him plenty of time for his presidential campaign. Both she and her mother accompanied Leopold and Mary-Margaret on the trip and left her at The Godolphin and Latymer school for girls in London. After a month or so travelling and shopping they  
headed to Southampton to catch the ship back to New York. As the days had gone on Regina had become more and more cold and detached, almost numb. She didn't want to feel anything and couldn't bare to think of her impending nuptials. Everyone who met  
her just thought of her as a snobbish entitled brat and she had no intention of proving them wrong anytime soon. As they stood on the dock, she looked out from under her wide brimmed hat and exclaimed haughtily "It doesn't look any bigger than  
the Mauritainia" before they climbed up the gangplanknk to their first class cabin on the Titanic.


End file.
